


The Anatomy Of Sunshine

by thegrimshapeofyoursmile



Category: Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Young Avengers
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, F/M, M/M, Teacher AU, minor teacher-student relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-25
Updated: 2014-02-08
Packaged: 2017-12-30 10:37:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 11,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1017587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thegrimshapeofyoursmile/pseuds/thegrimshapeofyoursmile
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Billy Kaplan enters a new school with new challenges. Soon he faces a new crush, teachers who actually try to teach their students something valuable, a play, and much more. Meanwhile, teacher Steve Rogers accidentally falls in love with the most famous man of town, tries to get some sense for art in his students and also tries to prevent catastrophies from happening.// Teacher/High School AU, enjoy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In Which Billy Meets His Future and Steve Goes Into Battle

**Author's Note:**

> Consider this an experiment. I just wanted to write something light-hearted with the Young Avengers as ordinary students and most of the Avengers as their teachers. Let's see where this goes.  
> Enjoy!

“You’re new here, right?”

Billy blinks, smiles. The guy in front of him is broad-shouldered and handsome. There are three silver rings in his ear- rebellious; Billy likes that. “Yeah, I am. I’m Billy, Billy Kaplan.”

“Teddy Altman. You need some help ‘round here?” The guy smiles down at him and lightly scratches his nose. He is cute.   
“Yeah, uh, could you show me the way to the art room?”

“Oh, you’re having Mr. Rogers’s class now?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Awesome, I’m in that course too. Just come with me.”

“Oh, I’d love to,” Billy says and trails along after Teddy, casually checking out his ass.

//////

Steve Rogers is tall, broad-shouldered, blonde and handsome. Billy thinks that he likes this school because it provides him with lots of guys falling exactly into what he likes about guys. Yeah, Mr. Rogers is his teacher and Billy isn’t exactly fond of the entire teacher-student-romance-thing many people like, but he can appreciate a good booty if he sees one and his teacher has one like a Greek good.

He also apparently takes no shit from his students.

/////

Three hours later Billy discovers that he has Mr. Rogers in History as well. 

/////

“Good morning,” Steve tells his students and smiles. It’s a beautiful day and it’s a shame that they have to sit inside. Luckily he is in the position to change this unfortunate circumstance. “Let’s go outside for this day’s class, shall we?”

There is a whoop of joy coming from his students and he smiles a little more, lifts a finger and says in his best commanding voice, “But there are rules. You will not behave like a band of flying monkeys, alright? Else I’ll become the Wicked Witch of the West and lock you all in again. Understood?”

The thing with kids is that most adults believe them to be the most difficult persons ever when they only need somebody to lend them a hand and guide them with gentleness every once in a while. No child is born to be a bully; they’re being made bullies by the way they grow up, the way they get to see the world. There’s always time to make them see the potential they have. There’s always time to encourage them to use their full potential and become good people. 

These kids, they indulge him in his little references to well-known books and rush out of the school building into the garden like a herd of garden gnomes. Steve couldn’t imagine a nicer day.

/////

“Remember to behave, people, alright? This is a gallery, not the playground. Does everyone have their work sheet?”

Billy lifts his hand. Steve quirks an eyebrow at him. “Yes, Billy?”

“Uh,” Billy says and sheepishly rubs the back of his neck. “I may have forgotten mine.”

“Here you have another.” Steve hands him one and fights a smile. He doesn’t like to go into battle unprepared. “Now, the ones who wanna hear something about the magnificent art they can find here come with me. The others can go look around themselves. Just do me a favor and try to fill in your work sheets, alright? I’m here to teach you folks something and what you can find here is partially brilliant.” 

“Only partially?” A man asks and Steve frowns at him. The stranger has a handsome face with a neatly trimmed beard and mirthfully glinting dark eyes. He wears a suit with elegant casualness, like a man who has to wear a lot of suits but would rather wear something else. 

“Well, yes,” Steve answers and shrugs. “I personally think that there are quite a few paintings that are horrendous, but that doesn’t mean I cannot recognize them as artistically valuable.” He smiles a little. “And this is exactly what I try to teach my students.”

“Huh”, The man says and grins. Steve feels mocked and tries not to clench his jaw together, he really does, but something about the guy’s expression makes him furious. His students watch the discussion with almost morbid fascination. Steve takes a deep breath and smiles at them. “Alright, people, let’s go.”

He is pleased to discover that most of his students follow him willingly, listening to the background information he gives them about the paintings he stops in front of and even capable of telling some important details about the angles, positions and lighting. These are the moments he likes most about his job; he almost feels as if he had achieved something.

The only thing that bothers him is that the stranger apparently decided to be the curse of his life and follow him everywhere as well, asking question he can’t impossibly be serious about and grinning every time Steve answers to them. It doesn’t help that he has a face Steve would like to draw. It doesn’t help that he has a vitality, a spirit Steve would like to capture with charcoal and sharp, blurry lines. It doesn’t help that he causes agitation between his students, a quiet, constant whispering Steve doesn’t like at all.

“You are mocking me in front of my students,” He bites out and the stranger laughs.

“Why, you think so? I think everything you said sounded quite logical, even though I didn’t care for much of it.”

“Why ask me then?” Steve snaps, furious. 

“Because you have a nice voice and I haven’t seen many competent teachers in my life,” The guy says and winks. Steve can’t help but blush and hates him for it. 

“Who the hell are you anyways?” Steve demands to know. From the corner of his eyes, he can see Kate Bishop slapping her hand against her forehead and moan in agony. The stranger looks surprised, then he throws his head back and laughs heartily. 

“You’re gold. Call me sometime, yeah?” He says, winks again, slips a business card between Steve’s arms folded in front of his chest and walks away.

“Really, Mr. Rogers?” Kate Bishop says accusingly. “You don’t know who Tony Stark is? Are you living on the _moon_?”


	2. In Which Billy Finds Out More About Teddy And Steve Has An Important Discussion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all your lovely feedback, I was very happy! :D  
> Enjoy reading!

“Glenn Miller again.”

Teddy gently nudges Billy’s shoulder and smiles down at him. Billy looks away because lately he has a shitload of butterflies in his stomach whenever Teddy smiles at him like that and he doesn’t even know if Teddy likes him like that, if he likes guys like that at all. He should probably subtly ask about that at one point, Billy decides. “I like it though. All that Glenn Miller and Louis Armstrong and stuff he plays and then he just randomly adds modern songs. I think that suits him, don’t you think? And if you don’t like to paint while listening to it, you can put in your earphones and listen to your kind of music. I think that’s nice.”

“I didn’t say it was nice, I think it’s rather sweet,” Billy says and Teddy’s eyes twinkle.

“Yeah?” He says and nudges Billy again. “You think our teacher’s sweet?”

And oh well, Billy didn’t think they would have that particular conversation this fast, but then again, many things in his life don’t go as planned, so he just shrugs and says, “He’s a pretty nice, pretty handsome dude, yeah, I totally understand why Tony Stark himself hit on him in front of a row of teenagers.”

“Me too,” Teddy says, “Even though he’s not really my type, I guess.”

“Oh yeah? What’s your type then? Blonde and big-chested?” Billy asks and holds his breath a little.

Teddy just laughs and shakes his head. “Nah,” He says softly and throws him a side-glance. “I like ‘em dark-haired and flat-chested.”

Which is, well.

/////

“Kate, that’s not an ink painting.”

“I don’t like ink.”

“Why not?”

Kate shrugs. She is a fierce girl with a quick, sarcastic wit and Steve likes her quite well. However, sometimes she has her own head and is stubborn enough to try to get away with it. Fortunately, there is nobody as stubborn as Steve. “I just like pencils better.”

“I understand that you have your preferences, but today’s lesson is not about pencil, Kate, it’s about ink,” Steve says patiently. “Please at least try it. You can’t improve if you’re not ready to experience things you’ve never experienced before.”

Kate sighs, sighs even more and rolls her eyes. “Alright,” She finally says and Steve smiles at her. 

/////

“I have no idea what to do about Eli,” Steve admits and rubs his eyes. “I can’t give him anything but F after F on his history exams and he does nothing to show me he wants to get through this year.”

“Then don’t let him pass,” Clint suggests without opening his eyes. He lounges on the sofa in the teacher’s lounge he claims to be his, boots standing beside it, but only because Steve demanded him to pull them off before stretching out on the sofa. “That’s what I do if my kids claim they can’t possibly run these fifteen minutes because they have a little cough. Like, come on, they’ll be dead right away when the zombies attack us with that kind of attitude.”

“Zombies will never attack us, Clint,” Bruce comments from the corner of the room without looking up from his book. 

“Yeah, you tell that the zombies,” Clint promptly returns. Bruce sighs.

//////

“Mr. Rogers?” Maria Hill calls from her seat behind the desk. Everything in front of her is laid out accurately, everything at his place; the pencils are lined up like soldiers. In front of her is a neatly stacked arsenal of paper. She is one of the most competent secretaries Steve has ever had the pleasure to meet. “Somebody called and told me to leave a note for you.” She clears her throat and smirks. Steve blushes if only for her expression because he has no idea who could have called. 

“Alright?” He says cautiously and she hands him a small sticky note. Steve thanks her, looks at it and frowns.

“Who is Tony?” He wonders, then it hits him. “Oh fuck.”

/////

“Anthony Star—“

“What do you want from me? I’m sorry, that came out ruder than it sounded in my head. Uhm this is… This is Steve, Steve Rogers.”

There is amused laughter on the other end of the line. “Nice to hear from you, Steve. Got my note?”

“Yeah, that’s why I'm calling. What do you want from me?”

“Right to the point, I see. I like that.”

“Don’t play games with me, I’m not in the mood.”

“What if I don’t want anything besides a date?”

Steve pauses. Looks at his phone. Wonders if he heard what he heard. “Excuse me, what did you say?”

“Well, essentially I asked you to go out with me.”

“I googled you.”

“Googled me?” Tony laughs, but it doesn't sound particularly pleased. “Please tell me what you found out about me, then.”

“You don’t go out with High School teachers. You go out with models and designers and pretty, mindless people ready to indulge every of your eccentric ideas because you’re Tony Stark. I don’t like to go out with people who like to go out with people only liking them for their money and their name. I don’t like to indulge people in every eccentric idea they have because sometimes those ideas are stupid and self-harming.”

There is a long pause, so long, in fact, that Steve isn’t sure whether Tony hung up on him or not, then Tony says quietly, almost soberly, “Maybe that’s the reason I want to go out with you.”


	3. In Which We Find Out More About A Teacher's Life And Steve Has A Date

“Year 1914 was a special year in the First World War. Anyone knows why? No? Doesn’t matter. 1914 was the year where the week before Christmas, German and English soldiers started wishing each other season greetings, even going so far as walking over to the other side to exchange gifts. Isn’t that just impossibly great? Yes, Cassie?”

Cassie looks up at him with her impossibly blue eyes and asks, “Did that happen everywhere? Because it’s hard for me to picture that they actually paused an entire war just because it was Christmas.”

“Sadly, the answer to that is no. On many places, there were still fights. Still, I believe that is one of the most amazing things in history ever. Doesn’t this show better than anything else that the people fighting in a war are only human, too? You see, the tricky thing about war is that most of the time, you cannot tell that one side is clearly the evil one. With World War Two, it is clear. What Hitler did was by no means justifiable or could be counted as a good thing. But with most other wars, there are just two or more parties interested in different things. That’s what you have to learn, kids- the world isn’t divided in black and white, even though that would be a lot easier. The enemy’s not always the enemy because they’re evil but because they see things differently and misunderstandings happen.”

/////

“I don’t like talking to parents,” Steve admits and rubs his eyes. Clint grunts and doesn’t move from the couch. Steve looks over at Bruce, who corrects the position of his glasses and folds together his newspaper with a sigh.

“It’s one of the things you cannot escape,” He says patiently.

“Still sucks,” Clint says without opening his eyes and starts opening a bag of chips.

“Oh, now you decide to participate in the conversation?” Bruce asks with a little resignation in his voice.

“Nah,” Clint says after a moment and starts eating the chips, still with closed eyes. Steve is a little impressed at the amount of fucks Clint doesn’t give. He decides to drink another cup of coffee.

“By the way, we still need more people to organize the Summer Ball,” Bruce says.

/////

“You are where now?” Steve yells in the phone. The connection is shit, but he would never say that.

“Russia!” Bucky yells back and he sounds- he sounds good, carefree, almost like he used to back before the war. Steve smiles a little because it’s been a while since he heard Bucky like that. Traveling abroad seems to be good for him. “I met a girl here, she has a lot of Vodka and great tits- I even might be a little in love with her, we’ll see about that!”

“That’s good to hear!” Steve yells. “When are you coming back?”

“Dunno, probably not for another couple months,” Bucky yells, “Why? Already missin’ me, punk?”

“Just missing your ugly face, jerk,” Steve yells and Bucky laughs.

“Soon,” He promises and well, it’s better than nothing.

/////

“You have a dog?” Tony asks and peers down at the enthusiastic golden retriever trying to dry-hump his left leg in excitement. It’s their first date. Tony graciously told him to pick, so Steve picked the dog park because he has to go take a walk with Thor anyways and he wants to see how Tony does outside of fancy restaurants and galleries. 

“Yeah, that’s Thor,” Steve says. Thor looks up at him and sits down on his big, hairy ass as if he expected a treat now, which he actually does. When the only thing happening is Tony scratching him behind his ears, the dog actually somehow manages to look disappointed. “He’s always hungry, so watch out or he’ll try to chew on you.”

Tony looks a little concerned after that. Steve tries not to feel smug about it. Seconds later he feels bad about feeling smug about it, so he asks, “You have pets on your own?”

“Couple of sharks,” Tony says and crouches down to let Thor lick over his face. He wears jeans and a shirt that’s a little crumpled around the edges, as if he pulled it on in haste. “I don’t think they count as pets, though, since you can’t really pet them. Pun fully intended. I always wanted a dog but my parents always said no and now I’m kinda busy all the time, so it would probably be a bad idea to keep a pet that needs my frequent attention, I mean I’m bad at giving attention on my best days if I have to give it to people, so it can only be worse with pets, right?”

“Sometimes, animals are easier,” Steve says. Tony blinks up at him and smiles.

“Sorry, by the way, I tend to ramble a lot,” He says.

“That’s okay,” Steve says, “I’m a teacher. Sorry about all the dry-humping, by the way, he seems to like you.”

“I never liked those jeans anyways,” Tony says with a complete straight face and Steve finds himself laughing. Maybe this will go better than he thought.


	4. In Which Kate Silently Begins Recruiting and There Is More Of Steve And Tony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Annnd another one. Thanks for all the lovely feedback, it is appreciated! *hugs all*  
> Enjoy more teenage awkwardness and Steve.

“Mr. Rogers?”

Steve looks up. Cassie stands in front of him and seems unusually fidgety. She usually is a quiet, but content pupil and it is a surprise to see her like this. “Can I help you?” He asks gently and blinks when Cassie bursts into tears. For a moment, he is completely helpless; he’s never been good with crying people, crying women specifically, and he has no idea what provoked this emotional turmoil. He hopes it’s not his new haircut. It is a little shorter than he intended to get, but he thinks that it is alright.   
“Oh my,” He says, gets up from his seat and offers it to Cassie, who sits down, still sobbing. Steve hurries to get her a tissue and watches her gently blow her nose. “What’s wrong, Cassie? Did something happen?”

“I’m sorry,” Cassie sobs, “I wanted to talk to you about my mark on the last exam, but--- my father, he had an accident and is in the hospital and I can’t think of anything else. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Steve says and it is because this, this he can handle. He leans down and puts a hand on her shoulder, trying to meet her eyes. When she finally looks at him, he tells her, “It’s okay to cry and it’s okay to be worried. You love your father and that’s a wonderful thing. I probably shouldn’t say this, but maybe you should skip the rest of the day and go home? You won’t be able to focus on the lessons anyways and I think it would be good for you to be at home now. Do you need someone to drive you home?”

“No, I practically live around the corner,” Cassie says. She doesn’t cry anymore, just sniffles quietly. Steve isn’t sure if this isn’t even worse. 

“Do you have someone to accompany you to your place then?” He asks. “I really don’t want you to run around alone like this, Cassie. Should I call your mom to pick you up?”

“I don’t know,” Cassie mumbles. 

“Would you be okay with it if I did?”

Cassie hesitates for a moment, then she nods. Steve smiles and reaches for his phone. “Alright. Just tell me the number.”

/////

“Still in Russia?” Steve yells. The phone connections is still shitty, but at least it works.

“Yeah,” Bucky yells and laughs. “Still in Russia and still with that girl.”

Her name, Steve learns, is Natasha and she is a dancer. She also apparently has hair as red as fire and delicate, strong hands she likes to tie Bucky up with. Steve listens to a lot of stories about very kinky sex that’s makes him blush and sighs.

“Stop,” He yells, “That is way too much information!”

Bucky laughs, then he yells questioningly, “Is there someone in your life, Stevie?”

“Probably,” Steve vaguely yells back and leaves it at that.

/////

“Come on, Mr. Rogers,” Kate says and drags her words longer than the chewing gum in her mouth. “We need more people to prep for the Summer Ball and you would be perfect to observe the preps and help with the decorations and stuff.”

“But why me?” Steve asks in true desperation and throws his hands up in the air. “Other teachers can observe the preparations and help with the decorations as well! Why me?”

“Well duh, ‘cause you’re the nicest teacher around here, 'sides Professor Banner,” Kate says matter-of-factly and peers at him over the rim of her stylish violet sunglasses. She is supposed to work with charcoal today and draw a part of the scenery in the park they are all sitting in, but somehow she seems to have forgotten about that. “Please? Pretty please?”

“I’ll think about it,” Steve says and sighs.

/////

“My parents were Irish immigrants,” Steve tells Tony on their second date. This time, it was Tony’s place to pick and of course he picked a fancy Italian restaurant Steve finds himself enjoying at its fullest. The food is excellent and the staff is friendly and discreet; Tony told him that he picked it especially because of the latter reason. There are many restaurants with good food, but not that many with truly discreet staff. Steve still has to wrap his head around the fact that he has to worry about these things now, or at least should, but instead he tells Tony about his childhood and doesn’t know why. “My mother was Catholic, my father Protestant. Mom always told me that their relationship was terribly romantic in the beginning. They fell in love when they were really young, about seventeen or something, which was, well, you know how the situation in Ireland was and is between Catholics and Protestants. So they ran away to America, with little on them, and married in a small church in Brooklyn.”

“That’s almost too romantic to be true,” Tony says and quirks up the corner of his mouth. He is tapping away on one of his tablets while they are speaking, but Steve doesn’t really mind. He has found out quite early that Tony is a master of multitasking. “What happened then?”

“Well, they had me,” Steve says and shrugs, taking another fork full of spaghetti, chewing carefully and swallowing before continuing, “And life in America was not as easy as they imagined it to be, at least that’s what mom told me. They were pretty poor and I was a sickly child. My father started drinking, then he started hitting. His last act of mercy was to die after mom kicked him out for good.”

Tony doesn’t tap on the tablet anymore, just looks at him with unusual single-minded focus. It makes Steve a little uncomfortable, so he tries to laugh and clears his throat because he doesn’t want to talk about his father and he definitely doesn’t want to talk about what a scrawny, half-dead brat he’s been. He doesn’t know Tony that well yet.

“Anyways,” He says a little too fast and smiles, “That’s why I celebrate St. Patrick’s Day every year.”

Tony’s eyes narrow for a moment, but he lets it slide, just shakes his head and asks, “And that Bucky friend of yours really dressed up as a four-leaf clover last year?”


	5. In Which Billy Wears Some Very Nice Shoes and Clint Swings Potatoes On Sticks

“I just like them,” Billy says.

“That’s okay,” Teddy says and tries not to ogle him. He doesn’t try really hard. Billy hides a smug grin and stretches out on his bed, red heels still curved around his feet.

“That doesn’t mean I wanna dress up like a girl or something,” He says, “I can just appreciate a nice pair of shoes when I see one.”

“That’s okay,” Teddy repeats and yeah, he’s definitely given up trying to be subtle about the way he looks at Billy’s legs.

“So, I was thinking and I just, we should go out, go watch a movie or something,” Billy blurts out without really thinking about it and rubs the back of his head, suddenly feeling embarrassed. He definitely wanted to ask Teddy out a little more subtle and a little more romantic. Why do these things tend to never go the way he wants them to? Maybe it's because Teddy surprised him with expensive red high heels on his feet and instead of judging him hard like he could have done, he just keeps looking at him with something like wonder. That can do things to a boy. “Only if you want to, though. I mean.”

Teddy looks up, curls his mouth into a soft grin and sits down on the edge of Billy’s bed. “Will you keep on these shoes?”

“Why?” Billy asks, surprised.

“I kinda like them on you,” Teddy mumbles and blushes, awkwardly rubbing his nose. Billy thinks that he has never seen a more adorable human being and decides that he definitely wants to keep him. That is, if Teddy lets him.

“I can put them on afterwards for you again,” He says after a moment of consideration.

“Deal,” Teddy says immediately and grins. “I’ll pick the movie, you pick the place we have fast food at afterwards.”

“Deal,” Billy says and grins back.

/////

“Okay, Billy,” Kate says and peers at him over the rim of her flashy violet sunglasses. “I need your help.”

“My help?” Billy repeats and blinks because Kate is rich, good-looking and one of the most liked kids at school while Billy is just a guy with an infatuation with superheroes. He cannot possibly imagine what Kate could want from someone like him. 

“Yeah, your and your boyfriend’s help,” Kate says patiently.

“He isn’t my boyfriend,” Billy says, then, after a moment of consideration, adds, “Not yet.”

“Details, details,” Kate says and waves her hand. “Your writing skills are pretty impressive, right? There’s a rumor that your English teacher even said you could craft a new reality with your words.”

“Pretty sure he overreacted,” Billy says and awkwardly clears his throat. Teddy beams at him like a proud father, which is a mental image Billy never wanted to have. “Why do you ask?”

“Well, traditionally there’s a play before all that dancing at the Summer Ball starts,” Kate explains, “Sadly, we have nobody to write the play for this year, so. You in? That’s a pretty big deal, come on!”

“Do I get paid?” Billy asks suspiciously.

“You get paid with honor,” Kate says haughtily, then adds, “And there’s a six-months-supply of chocolate for everyone who helps. I’m not rich without a reason, you know.”

“I’m in,” Billy says, “What do you need Teddy for?”

“Well,” Kate says and grins at Teddy. “You should see him on stage. He’s like a shapeshifter whenever he starts acting, it’s insane.”

/////

Headmaster Fury looks at them with his single, furious eye and folds his hands into each other. “Mr. Rogers,” He says very calmly, “May I ask you why a bunch of your pupils wandered around the school with potatoes impaled on large wooden sticks while yelling ‘Down with the king?’”

“We were talking about the French Revolution today, Sir,” Steve answers equally calmly. “They decided to do a re-enactment of the happenings. I support creativity in my students, Sir. Besides, they didn’t harm anyone in the process.”

“Kate Bishop hit Eli Bradley with a potato, Mr. Rogers.”

“I think they might be in love,” Steve says and smiles. Headmaster Fury looks at him as if he thought Steve had lost his mind. “Teenagers, Sir. Besides, it was a cooked potato and the only thing that probably got hurt was Eli’s pride.”

“Please no more re-enactment of historical events, Mr. Rogers,” Headmaster Fury says and looks as if he wants to massage his temple. “At least not the gory ones.”

“I will try to, Sir,” Steve says politely.

“Alright,” Headmaster Fury nods and turns towards Clint, who has almost fallen asleep in his chair but straightens at the attention. “Mr. Barton, could you explain to me why you decided to participate in the whole event?”

“Potatoes on sticks, Sir,” Clint says. “I like me some revolution.”


	6. In Which There Are Surprising Revelations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the lovely feedback uwu

There are some awful things about Tony in the daily newspaper. Steve reads through them for approximately ten seconds, then he calls him. It takes a while for Tony answer and when he does, he sounds distracted. “Pepper, I really can’t go to that board meeting because of reasons.”

“It’s me, Steve,” Steve says.

“Steve?” Tony repeats and his voice visibly brightens. It makes Steve bite the insides of his cheeks to suppress a smile. “Why are you calling me? Do you need your toaster get fixed?”

“No,” Steve says, bristling a little. “I just… I was thinking of you.”

There is a slight pause, then Tony laughs and asks, “You read the newspaper, right?”

“Yeah,” Steve admits, looks at the merry red clock on the wall of his kitchen and sighs. “It’s not… I mean, it’s not true, right?”

“Steven,” Tony says and for once sounds absolutely serious, “This woman was a woman I have business with. Not that kind of business. You know what I mean. We make business. I mean, economical business. Her company produces electrical parts I’m quite interested in. That’s it. Okay? I swear. I’m talking in short sentences now because I try not to ramble because I know that this is important. I hope you know what that means.”

“Yeah, okay,” Steve says. “Sorry. You should really go to that board meeting, you know.”

“I know,” Tony says, sighs and then adds, “Hey, wanna know what I’m currently building?”

/////

“I’m terribly sorry, Mrs. Bradley, but if Eli doesn’t improve in the next weeks, I don’t know if I can let him pass like this,” Steve says as gently as possible. The woman in front of him is impressive; tall and dark with grey hair and a wrinkled face, she sits ramrod-straight in front of him and just nods.

“I don’t know what to do with him,” She admits and sighs. “My husband and I, we’re raising him as well as we can, but we’re not the youngest anymore and my husband, you see, he’s a Second World War veteran and has been injured pretty badly back then.”

“I’ve been to war myself, Ma’am,” Steve says gently and dares to place a hand on hers. She looks up at him, surprised. “I know a thing or two about it and I know how hard it can be on the family members. Eli is a clever boy, Ma’am, it’d be a shame to not let him pass and I’d rather avoid that. I’ll talk to him once more, I just wanted to tell you where he’s standing now.”

“That’s terribly nice of you, Mr. Rogers,” Mrs. Bradley says warmly and smiles at him. “I will try to talk some sense in that stubborn head of his as well.”

/////

“Cassie, you’d be perfect as the princess,” Billy tells her while Kate stands beside him and tries to smile in a motivating way. “You like insects, right? I had you in my mind when I wrote her role, please, just. It would be amazing.”

Cassie bites her lips and sighs. “Do I get chocolate?”

“Dark chocolate just like you like it best,” Kate promises.

“Alright,” Cassie says and smiles. “I’ll try.”

/////

“I’ve never dated anyone that long without even getting a kiss,” Tony tells him the next time, panting heavily because Thor has taken great liking of him and always greets him by throwing himself against Tony with his full body weight by now.

“Sorry, not sorry?” Steve offers and tries to shove Thor off him. Thor reluctantly yields and licks all over Tony’s face instead.

“To be honest, I can’t remember dating anyone that long, period,” Tony says and scratches Thor behind his ears, causing Thor to roll back his eyes and huff in sheer pleasure. Steve doesn’t see anything but Tony’s dark eyes focusing on him and the slow, lazy smile curling around his lips. 

“Well, I’m kinda old-fashioned about these things. How does it feel?” Steve asks and grabs Thor at his collar to finally pull him back, picking up a stick and throwing it for him in the next minute. Thor is off like a rocket; Steve uses the time to breathe in deeply and look back at Tony, who still sits at the ground and watches him. It makes something flutter in Steve’s chest and he swallows. 

“You mean the dating thing? Terribly frustrating,” Tony says and grins. “But I like challenges.”

/////

“You’re not in love with Eli Bradley, right?” Clint asks Kate, still panting a little because damn, she knows how to use her mouth.  
Kate lays next to him, eyes closed and hair fanned out all over his cushion. She is practically glowing and he likes her that way, glides along the curve of her hips with his fingertips. She smiles and opens her eyes.

“Don’t be silly,” She says and puts a hand around his neck, pulling him towards her for a quick kiss. “Besides, would I risk sleeping with a teacher if I was?”

“Well, I’m kinda hot,” Clint points out and Kate laughs. “And I’m still suspicious you’re only sleeping with me to get me to help you with that Summer Ball.”

“Well, if I was, which I’m not, I’d be successful, wouldn’t I?” Kate says and bats her eyelashes at him. Clint rolls his eyes and presses a kiss on her cheek.

“You’re a little brat,” He tells her, “I like that.”

“I know,” Kate says smugly and wraps her legs around him.


	7. In Which Billy Has An Interesting Role For Teddy And Steve And Tony Get It On

“Now Headmaster Fury!” Billy pleads. Teddy covers one of his eyes, sits down behind Billy’s desk and looks down at him with a single, furious eye.

“Mr. Kaplan, could you explain how your underwear found its way into the teacher’s lounge?” He asks and his voice is entirely Headmaster Fury. It’s quite fascinating. 

“I don’t know, Sir,” Billy says and bats his eyelashes. “But I’m surprised you didn’t find Kate Bishop’s underwear there as well.”  
This causes Teddy to laugh and break his role. “Damn it, Billy, that’s not nice,” He laughs.

“Come on, she told us about it, I’m allowed to make fun of it!” Billy defends himself and smiles when Teddy gets up and wraps an arm around his shoulders. He leans into Teddy’s broad frame and sighs contentedly when Teddy runs a hand through his hair.   
“Thanks for making me the Butterfly Prince in your play, by the way,” Teddy says, “Another guy would fear for his masculinity.”  
“Yeah, but you’re the prettiest butterfly around here and you have to save Princess Cassie,” Billy says.

“You think I’m pretty?” Teddy asks softly. Billy holds his breath, gets himself together and twists his head to look up at Teddy.  
“Yeah,” He says. Teddy smiles and there is a moment where they just breathe, but then Teddy’s hand is on his cheek and he leans in, presses a soft kiss against Billy’s lips, then another. 

When he wants to pull back, Billy grabs him by the collar of his shirt and dives in for a third kiss.

/////

“Holy gosh,” Steve says and stares at Tony, who is soaked wet from the rain and sits on his doorstep when Steve opens his door. “What the hell are you doing here, Tony?”

“I realized something,” Tony says and looks up. “Can I… I mean. Can I come in?”

“Of course!” Steve says and hurries him inside. Thor looks up from the spot he always sleeps at and wags his tail, but he doesn’t move after a stern look from Steve. “You’ll catch a cold like this,” He murmurs softly and leads Tony to the bathroom. “Take a shower and put your wet clothes in the dryer. I’ll bring you something to wear.” 

“Steve,” Tony says and doesn’t move from his spot. “Can I stay here? This is-“ He clears his throat and almost helplessly gestures at the apartment around him. “You have a nice apartment. Why haven’t I seen it before?”

“I haven’t seen the place where you live yet as well,” Steve says quietly, “This is not about the apartment, right?”

“No,” Tony says and laughs. Steve thinks that maybe he is drunk, but he isn’t sure. 

“Stay,” Steve says, “And take a hot shower now, okay? I’ll make you something for dinner.”

Tony nods and walks into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. A moment later, Steve can hear the shower; he smiles to himself, even though Tony behaves strangely, and walks into his bedroom to pull something for Tony to wear out of his closet, then he moves to prepare the giant couch in the living room for him. It’s been so long since anyone has been in his apartment that it feels kind of strange having another presence in here, but it also feels good, feels right. He bites the insides of his cheeks and smiles to himself, placing the clothes in front of the bathroom door, walking into his tiny kitchen and starting to put some scrambled eggs and bacon together.

When Tony walks into the kitchen, in a shirt that’s slightly too big for him, shorts and black socks, and sits down on the counter, Steve looks up at him and smiles. Tony smiles back and lightly scratches his beard, thanking him with a smile when he puts the full plate in front of him. He doesn’t eat much, just plays with the eggs and chews on a strip of bacon. 

“The last time someone cooked for me was twenty years ago,” He suddenly says. Steve turns on the iPod in the dock station, sits down next to him and listens. “Jarvis. He was the butler of my parents. When I came home from MIT for vacation, there was nobody in the house. They forgot I returned. Or maybe they didn’t care in the first place.” He laughs a little, then clears his throat. “Anyways, Jarvis was there and he always made sure to greet me with something to eat. And now I’m sitting here in your kitchen and you make me food.”

“Tony,” Steve says; his throat feels suspiciously tight. Tony looks at him and smiles, soft and deeply unsure. 

“And I wonder,” He says quietly, looking down at the floor. “I wonder what it would be like, to move in this apartment as if I lived there, listen to that stupid Glenn Miller stuff every day because you like it so much or just hold your hand. And I wonder if you would let me. And that’s what I realized today. And I just. Wanted to tell you. Because I guess it’s kinda important, I guess you should know about that.” He takes a deep breath, huffs out a laugh and waves his hand. “I’m not good at that shit. I just. I just realized it’s not only a challenge anymore for me.”

“Tony,” Steve says quietly and reaches for his hand. “It’s never been a challenge for me. I was serious about you from the moment Thor walked over you and you let him.”

“I’m not used to people being serious about me,” Tony says and he talks too fast now, curls into himself as if to shield himself from Steve. “I’m not used to be serious about people. I talk too much and I am deeply committed to my work and I don’t know if I can do something like a relationship, seriously, actually, I’m pretty sure I can’t since I tried it once and it ended horrible, Pepper was crying a whole hour and it took weeks for us to be okay again, I don’t want the same thing again, I don’t want this with you, so I’ll just sleep on the couch tonight and be gone tomorrow morning, okay? Yeah.”

“No,” Steve says, wraps his hand around his wrist and tugs him up lightly. Tony trails along behind him, a little confused when Steve opens the door to his bedroom, gently ushers him inside and closes the door behind them. 

“I see you’re against my plan,” Tony says.

“Damn right,” Steve says and smiles. For a moment, there is only silence and the sound of rain falling on the black street in front of the mirror between them; in the background, Glenn Miller is still softly playing. Steve doesn’t bother turning on the lamp; he can see Tony just fine in the light of the streetlamp filtering in. 

“Okay,” Tony finally says and lunges himself at him.


	8. In Which Kate Does Some Persuasion And Steve And Tony Come Even Closer Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What was that about updating regularly? I am so sorry. >_

“Everyone has powers,” Kate tells Eli and peers at him from below the rim of her stupid violet sunglasses. “You don’t need to be a superhero like in the comics to have some. There are things you’re good at, right? What keeps you from showing the world what’s in you?”

“You and the potatoes you throw at me,” Eli says sourly. Kate rolls her eyes.

“I’m sorry about that, it was an accident,” She says, “Come on, you’d be good for the team. I want you on the team.”  
“Why?” Eli asks.

“Because I believe you can do great with us,” Kate says simply. “Come on.”

“Alright,” Eli says and Kate smiles.

/////

“You’re what now?” Steve yells. The connection is shitty as ever.

“I’m coming home!” Bucky yells, “And I’m taking Natasha with me! We’re gonna get married! Eventually, I mean.”

“I’d love to meet her,” Steve yells and means it. “I think you’re in love, jerk.”

“Shut up, punk,” Bucky replies, but he says it without anger, laughs instead. “She is good to me, Stevie, she is so good to me. She doesn’t even care about the arm.”

“I’m so happy for you, Buck,” Steve yells and means it. “And when you’re here, I’d like you to meet someone as well.”

/////

“Kate, that’s not fashion.”

“I don’t give a damn about fashion drawings, Mr. Rogers,” Kate replies and smiles sweetly at him. 

“Well, but this is today’s topic,” Steve says patiently. “Listen, fashion can be a lot of things, alright? It doesn’t have to be nice dresses and cute skirts. Start your own thing! Go wild with your imagination!”

“Mr. Rogers,” Kate says as patiently, “If I want to see some fashion, I buy the newest Vogue. Did I ever tell you that I had dinner with Anna Wintour once?”

“Well, but that’s life, Kate,” Steve says, “Sometimes you have to do things you don’t wanna do. In this case, it means drawing fashion because your teacher tells you so. Why don’t you, I don’t know, try some designs for superhero costumes?”

“Can I do that as well?” Billy yells from the other side of the room and seems breathless from excitement at the mere thought.

“Sure, why the heck not!” Steve yells back and smiles at him before turning back to Kate, who looks thoughtfully at the piece of paper in front of her. “So?”

“Alright,” Kate says and smiles sweetly.

Later, Steve gets back several superhero costume designs, among them a strong girl with long, black hair and flashy violet sunglasses in a completely violet outfit, bow and arrows in her hands. He gives Kate a B.

/////

“I’ve been to war,” Steve says softly, his limbs entirely tangled into the sheets and Tony. “I’ve seen war and it’s seen me. Sometimes I still can’t sleep. I don’t like loud noise because it upsets me most of the time. I have a problem with sirens sometimes, which is especially bad when there’s testing of the fire alarm in the school I’m teaching at. All things considered, I cope quite well with it, I guess, I mean I can live very normally. I’m lucky. I’ve been very lucky in my life in general, to be honest.”

“I wish I could recite some poetry like they always do in the movies in moments like this,” Tony says and presses his lips against Steve’s shoulder. They’re lying side by side, facing each other and pressed unspeakably close. “I can recite you some formulas, though, I’m pretty good with these.”

Steve laughs and rolls himself on top of Tony, gently rolling his hips against Tony’s, feeling him incredibly close underneath him. Tony smiles at him, eyes dark and lustful, and curls a hand around his waist, fingertips gliding along his spine before digging into his ass. He grins when Steve gasps and peppers his neck with sweet kisses, closing his eyes and breathing in deeply. Steve can feel his hand in his hair, playing with the strands and scratching his scalp, yanking them a little when Steve ducks his head and licks the scars on his chest he still doesn’t know the story to. 

When Steve wriggles himself between his thighs because he wants it like this now, Tony opens his eyes and smiles at him, letting go of his hair and caressing his cheek with one hand instead. The smile becomes visibly softer when Steve bends down and kisses the insides of his thighs like a prayer, like a thank you and it is, it is both and yet so much more than everything.

The lube is still on the small table beside the bed; Steve grabs it, opens the bottle and makes a little show of pouring the content on his fingers. There is something about the way Tony looks at him, touches him, that makes him incredibly self-confident and he loves it. Tony moans as if he’s getting paid for it when Steve starts to stretch him open with deep, slow movements of his fingers, drawing what is no doubt equations and numbers on Steve’s back with his fingertips.

Tony is calm and relaxed and he welcomes Steve inside him with nothing more than a low moan, digging his fingernails deeply into Steve’s back while not even feeling guilty about it, shamelessly sighing and mumbling when Steve holds him tight with his arms and presses his face against his neck, sucking a purple love bite into his skin while he thrusts into him in a gentle, slow rhythm. It’s making love and Steve likes it that way because he likes to take care of Tony and in this way, he feels like he does.  
Tony seems to agree.


	9. In Which Eli Is Not Amused And Natasha Makes An Appearance

“Okay, but can we talk about how Steve is practically glowing these days?” Clint asks. Bruce sighs. Steve wonders why it’s always only the three of them sitting in the teacher’s lounge. Aren’t there any other teachers in need of a coffee break? Granted, the coffee in the teacher’s lounge is not the best, but it’s tolerable and its burnt aftertaste has quite grown on Steve. Coffee makes him think of Tony, who is not able to string together coherent sentences in the morning without at least two cups, and it makes him smile.

“There, that’s what I mean,” Clint says and sounds satisfied.

“Maybe he got laid,” Carol points out and Bruce and Steve jump because they haven’t noticed her entering. Carol Danvers, their beautiful, incredibly clever P.E. teacher with long, blonde hair and blue eyes, grins at them as if she would know before filling a cup of coffee for herself and taking a sip. Apparently there are, indeed, other teachers in need of a coffee break.

“If so, it’s none of our business,” Bruce gently points out and Steve shoots him a grateful glance.

“So he _did_ get laid,” Clint says and grins smugly. “I bet it’s Tony Stark.”

/////

“Do you really think that was Tony Stark Mr. Rogers was drawing today in class?” Billy asks, cuddled together on his bed with Teddy. His bed is not the biggest and Teddy is quite big, but somehow, they fit, even though Billy has to practically crawl into him to make it work.

“Dude, I know that beard when I see it,” Teddy replies and presses a kiss against the top of Billy’s head, chuckling when Billy practically purrs.

“Kate says Clint, I mean Mr. Barton- holy fuck, how can she call him by his first name? It’s so weird!-, said Mr. Rogers and Tony Stark got it going on,” Billy muses. Teddy snorts a little and buries his nose into Billy’s hair. 

“Well, I don’t know if Mr. Barton knows more than us,” He points out. Billy hums in agreement, then he remembers something important.

“Oh yeah, by the way,” He says, “My delinquent twin brother? He’s returning from boot camp this week.”

/////

“No,” Eli says.

“Oh come on, Eli, I know you’d be perfect!” Billy says, or rather, pleads. He is not ashamed to admit it. This play has quite grown on him and he wants the perfect cast for it.

“A star?” Eli asks accusingly. “A fucking star?”

“A star leading Prince Hulkling to Princess Cassie!” Billy points out. “A snarky, very important star that’s got the best parts of the play!”

“Wasn’t it the Butterfly Prince?” Eli asks.

“Unfortunate events caused me to overthink the role,” Billy says as majestically as he can. In truth, Teddy took away his ice cream and didn’t give it back until Billy promised to make him more badass in the play and well. Butterflies are pretty and important and all that shit, but they’re not exactly badass.

“Unfortunate events, huh?” Eli echoes and grins. “Did Teddy threaten you with no sex for two weeks?”

“Are you taking the role now or not?” Billy demands and refuses to blush. Eli sighs, sighs some more, looks at Billy and sighs again. Billy considers being offended at being sighed at like that, but then again, sighing seems to be Eli’s special talent. 

“Okay, I’ll be a fucking star,” He says.

“How patriotic!” Billy says and grins.

/////

“Sorry, am I interrupting something?” Tony asks and wriggles his eyebrows at him. “This seems like a love affair, you know. My God, even on the desk, you naughty little teacher, you!”

Steve laughs and allows Tony to crawl onto his lap. “Just some homework I have to correct until Tuesday,” He says and kisses the nape of Tony’s neck. Tony hums in delight and picks up one of the essays.

“’The French Revolution’,” He reads aloud, “’So there was a bunch of angry Frenchmen who had no potatoes and their queen basically told them to fuck off- sorry, Mr. Rogers- and eat cake, which was hilarious because they hadn’t even potatoes, so how could they afford cake? At least if cake was more expansive than potatoes back then like it is today.’” Tony pauses; Steve chuckles in his neck. “I’d give that kid an A, you know, just for deep thoughts about that topic. ‘Anyways, the angry Frenchmen decided that they had enough of the daily shit- sorry, Mr. Rogers- their rulers blabbered and stormed their castle to kill them all with a thing called Guillotine. And thus, the streets of Paris were flooded with peasants and chopped-off monarchist heads.’”

It takes Tony approximately one second to start laughing and then he has a hard time stopping. Steve smiles as well, even though he probably should be horrified by this essay, but he has learned early to take things like this in stride and above all, not too seriously. 

“At least he apologized for using swearwords,” Tony says and wipes the tears from the corners of his eyes.

“It’s a she,” Steve corrects mildly and puts an F with the words “Sorry, America, but I’d love to hear a more detailed, professional version of this” on top of the sheet. He underlines the word “professional” three times, just to make sure. 

“You gotta love kids sometimes,” Tony says and picks out another essay.

/////

“Listen here,” Steve says to Eli. He can practically hear Bucky add a “Little shit” to his words. “I grew up in Brooklyn as the son of two Irish immigrants. My father was a heavy alcoholic and died early. My mother was the most amazing person on earth and slaved in the hospital as a nurse to feed us through. I was a skinny, asthmatic kid that liked to go into trouble big time.”

“You? Into trouble?” Eli asks disbelievingly and Steve hides a smile.

Instead, he nods. “Yeah. I used to get into fights with people bigger and stronger than me because I didn’t know when to back down. The thing is, I always got into these fights because I believed in something. That’s not what you do, Eli. You’re only acting self-destructing and dumb. You get into fights because of nothing and you gain nothing of them.” Steve sighs. Eli says nothing, just stares at the wall of the classroom. “You can do so much more. I know it. I’ve seen it. Act like it. Make your family proud and, most of all: Make yourself proud.”

/////

“So is there new evidence that Steve is sleeping with Tony Stark?” Kate asks Clint and trails a hand up his biceps, smiling when he flexes it to show off. 

“Well, not so much evidence as proof,” Clint answers with a grin and lifts his head to kiss her thoroughly before continuing, “Yesterday he sat in the teacher’s lounge with a box of donuts, complained about the sofas and decided to buy us a new coffee machine, which I’m definitely not complaining about.”

“Is it true that there are regular parties in the teacher’s lounge?” Kate asks and tilts her head a little in curiosity. Clint shakes with laughter.

“That what the kids today are talking about?” He asks and laughs again. “Sorry, lil witch, can’t tell you. It’s a secret.” He sobers up when he realizes how young Kate is. Not his student, but a student. She is seventeen. They really shouldn’t be doing this. They really should---

“Hey,” He says softly before he can get any further doubts. “C’mere and kiss me again, will ya?”

/////

Natasha is a beautiful woman. She has short, fiery red hair and green eyes that look at Steve intently enough that he gets a little uncomfortable, but then again, he is always uncomfortable in the presence of women. Her body is lean and slim, just like he always imagined the body of a dancer to be, and she wears her simple black dress with utmost grace.

“Hello, Steven, nice to meet you,” She says with a low, firm voice and looks him straight in the eyes when she talks to him. He shakes her hand and decides that she is a little scary, but he likes her. Bucky looks like he is bursting with happiness, never stopping touching Natasha’s elbow, or her shoulder, or the wrist of her hand. 

She smiles back at him and it is a genuine smile, but it takes hours for her to loosen up and show Steve her dry sense of humor. They also discover that she is surprisingly catastrophic in the kitchen, but that’s alright. She doesn’t say anything about the missing arm Bucky has (or rather: has not, since it’s obviously not there), or the scar on his cheek, leaning into his wounded side sometimes and gently kissing his scarred cheek. Steve decides that Bucky has his blessing to marry this woman and have a couple of kids with her if he wants to. 

“I’ve shown you mine, now show me yours,” Bucky demands when he and Natasha are leaving late, late at night, pleasantly tipsy and content.

Steve smiles and promises, “Soon.”


	10. In Which Tommy Arrives And Paint Gets Thrown Around

“I look ridiculous,” Teddy says and frowns at his image in the mirror. His skin is green and leathery and he is clad in something resembling armor. Billy decides that he is most certainly very impressed with the talent of that costume designer calling himself Vision. Odd name for a strange dude, but the guy definitely knows what he’s doing, so Billy doesn’t complain.

“You look perfect as always,” Billy assures him and presses a kiss against Teddy’s green shoulder. Teddy smiles at him through the mirror.

“Sap,” He says fondly, “Next you tell me you would love me even if I looked like this all the time.”

“I would!” Billy promptly insists, “You’re the most attractive green guy I’ve seen so far.”

Teddy laughs and turns around to kiss him. He smears green paint all over Billy’s face, but it doesn’t matter, even though Vision suffers from a silent heart attack when he sees them one hour later.

/////

The day Tommy arrives at school is the day several girls decide they dig the sex-and-crime look on boys. Tommy grins in a way that infuriates every single teacher besides Clint, who grins back in the same way. 

“His hair is white,” Steve hisses and throws a look at the way Tommy wears his clothes- rumpled and only the acquired minimum of them, loose tie and halfway unbuttoned shirt. “Why is his hair white?”

“Latest fashion,” Carol says and sounds amused. “I think the girls like it.”

“He doesn’t look like Billy at all,” Bruce decides and looks back at his newspaper. 

“He does,” Tony comments from the new couch he donated to the teacher’s lounge, sipping the coffee from the new coffee machine he donated to the teacher’s lounge. “Just look at his facial and body features. You get too distracted by his eyes and hair. Classic mistake. It’s all in the bone structure, my friend, it’s all in the bone structure.”

“I teach Biology and Chemistry, you don’t have to tell me about bone structure, Tony,” Bruce says mildly and everyone in the teacher’s lounge rolls their eyes because it was love at first sight between Bruce and Tony and nobody is sure if that really is a good thing given the fact that Bruce regularly blows stuff up if he is too upset about something and Tony is, well, Tony. 

“By the way,” Carol says and points her finger at Tony, “Why the hell are you always hanging around here anyways? You’re not even a teacher!”

/////

“Tony!” Steve yells and drops everything when he finds Tony in a heap on the floor, breathing heavily and pale as a vampire. Tony lifts his head and tries to smile, but somehow it doesn’t calm Steve down in the least. 

“Pills,” Tony whispers, “In my jacket.”

Steve looks around and finds the jacket on the couch. He makes a beeline towards it, searches for the pills and finds them in the breast pocket. He hesitates for a moment, then he runs into the kitchen, fills a glass with water and brings it to Tony, handing him the pills. Tony’s hands shake so hard he almost drops the glass, so Steve asks him gently to open his mouth, places the pill on his tongue and helps him take several sips from the water. After a while, Tony stops shaking, but he still looks pale, so Steve fetches a blanket, wraps him into it and carefully pulls him into his arms.

“Sorry about that,” Tony finally says, “Should’ve probably told you. Heart condition. Need these pills or else… Well.”

“Tony,” Steve says and doesn’t know how to verbally express his horror, his worry, his fear. His heart is in his throat and he swallows around it, tries to find the right words and fails spectacularly. Somehow, Tony seems to have one of his enlightened moments because his eyes are unusually soft when he looks at Steve.

“It’s alright,” He says and lifts a hand to play with the dog tags around Steve’s neck. “I’m a survivor, you know. I’m pretty good at surviving. And fixing things. Not relationships or something, I’m pretty shitty at fixing those, but I’m good with broken things and stuff. I mean, immobile things. Anyways, I won’t bite it just yet, alright? Stop looking like that, no matter what they told you, you’re an ugly crier and I prefer you pretty.”

Steve laughs a little, tightens his grip around Tony. Doesn’t let go for quite a while. Tony seems to be okay with that.

/////

“Kate, this is not the fencing lesson,” Steve says patiently, “You don’t have to wield your paintbrush like that, you know.”

“Sorry, Mr. Rogers,” Kate says, her cheek and hair full of paint. Steve bites the insides of his cheeks to stifle a laugh. “I’d rather go fencing, though. No offence.”

“None taken,” Steve replies and puts on his best poker face, which is not that horrible, really, even though Bucky claims something different. “Look, I understand perfectly well that painting can make you very passionate, but please try not to coat the entire classroom in paint splatters next time, alright?”

“I can key her car as revenge, Mr. Rogers,” Tommy offers. 

“Don’t you dare!” Kate shrieks and throws blue paint at him. Tommy ducks behind his desk, coats his brush in purple paint and flings it right back at him. He catches Billy instead, who shouts in indignation, which alarms Teddy in turn. Steve watches, completely horrified, as his students start throwing paint across the entire classroom, then he takes a deep breath and yells, “Everyone stop immediately!”

His commandeering voice apparently still has its effects because the kids, even Tommy and Kate, stop dead in their tracks and look at him. Steve takes a look at them, inhales deeply and says very calmly, “And now you go to janitor Coulson and get enough supplies to clean this room spotless. Now.”

There is a collective groan, but they all fill out of the classroom and shuffle along the hallway. Steve looks around the room, scrapes blue paint from the back of his hand and allows himself to laugh heartily.


	11. In Which Everything Comes Together In The End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter, people! A huge thank you and big hug to everyone who took their time to read this, I hope you enjoyed this silly little story. :)

“Oh God,” Tony murmurs.

“Tony, you’ll be fine,” Steve says fondly, “What are you so afraid of?”

“I don’t---I’m not good with stuff like this, yeah?” Tony almost yells and checks his suit for stains for what feels like the hundredth time. “And he’s your family, right? What’s left of it, I mean. Holy shit, that came out very mean. I didn’t mean it like that. I mean, your family is de---I’m shutting up now. Definitely shutting up now. How do I look?”

“You look good,” Steve assures him and squeezes his hand. Tony doesn’t squeeze back so much as cling onto it like a drowning sailor onto a lifeboat. “He won’t eat you alive, you know.” Steve pauses and mulls over his words. “Well, he’ll probably try to make you uncomfortable to test you.”

“I’m fucked,” Tony says with a groan.

“I’m pretty sure you two will get off like a house on fire,” Steve says with a smile and rings. Seconds later the door opens and Steve ushers him inside. Bucky’s apartment is on the third floor and there is no elevator; Steve glances at Tony now and then to make sure his heart can take it. Tony rolls his eyes at him but Steve can see the relief in his face when they finally reach the open door.

“In with you, I’ve got food for you!” Bucky hollers from the kitchen. Natasha, who isn’t allowed in Bucky’s kitchen after That One Incident They Never Speak About, comes out of the dining room and smiles her sharp smile at them. She wears a black dress, black thighs and no shoes. She looks like she belongs here and it makes Steve incredibly happy. 

“You must be Tony,” She says after firmly shaking Steve’s hand and turns toward Tony to give him a once-over. Tony marvels at her and Steve can’t even be jealous about it because Natasha is an incredibly beautiful woman. 

“I am,” He says and kisses her hand, causing her to smile in amusement. “And you must be the beautiful Natasha Romanova.”

“Hands off my woman,” Bucky says and comes out of the kitchen. Steve notices that he is dressed to impress, in black jeans and blue shirt that accentuates his eyes. He wears them with a casualty that shows how serious he is about this entire thing. It’s never good if Bucky dresses casually. “Hi,” He says to Tony and offers him his hand. “Sorry, my right arm got blown off in the war by a grenade. I’m Bucky.”

“That’s the best introducing I’ve heard for a while now,” Tony says and shakes his hand. “I’m Tony.”

“Yeah, I know,” Bucky says and grins in a way that eerily reminds him of Natasha’s before he drops his hand. “Please, dinner is ready in a minute.”

Natasha walks with them into the dining room and sits down. Steve and Tony follow her and it doesn’t take long for Tony and Natasha to have a polite conversation about nuclear weapons. Sometimes Steve looks at the life choices he made and wonders a little. 

Bucky has to walk in and out of the room several times to get everything on the table, but he stubbornly refuses any help. Steve nearly moans out of pleasure when he sets down the turkey onto the table.

Bucky allows Steve to cut it, smiling in satisfaction when Natasha leans over and grazes his cheek with a kiss, murmuring something in his ear. Tony nods at the empty space where Bucky’s right arm is supposed to be while Natasha meticulously cuts the meat on Bucky’s plate without making any fuss about it.

“Doesn’t that make things pretty difficult?” He asks curiously. “Jerking off, for example?”

For a moment, Steve honestly thinks that Bucky will grip the next knife and cut Tony’s throat open, but then he laughs heartily.

“Yeah, some things are pretty difficult, I guess,” He admits, “But I’m no better off with a prosthesis that looks nice but can’t do shit, you know? I’d rather go without than with a thing like that.”

Steve knows the glint that’s in Tony’s eyes when he leans forward and asks, “And what if I can make prosthesis that can do everything?”

/////

“Sometimes I hate being a teacher,” Bruce confesses. Tony looks up from the sofa he is lying on and raises his eyebrows.

“Don’t tell that Steve,” He says. By now, there are times where he hangs around in the teacher’s lobby without Steve even being there. Nobody asks why anymore. 

”I mean I have to tell them that drugs are evil when I want nothing more but give them a nice blunt to calm down,” Bruce continues. Tony raises his eyebrows even more. “I mean, kids these days are always so stressed. They fuss about the smallest things. That can’t be healthy, you know. They have to learn how to relax.”

“You’re the most interesting teacher I’ve ever met,” Tony informs him. 

Bruce throws him a half-smile and says, “Don’t tell that Steve.”

//////

”Okay, people, are you ready?” Steve says and smiles at his students. Billy chews on his nails while Teddy tries to correct the position of one of his green wings. Cassie fidgets in the red dress she is wearing, but she looks lovely and practically glows with excitement. Eli doesn’t scowl for once; instead, he makes a focused face behind the mask he is wearing, the white star on his chest impressively bright. Kate, completely dressed in purple for some reason, makes some last notes on her check board and nods.

“Ready,” She says with a confident voice.

“I’m gonna die,” Billy mumbles.

“You’re not the one who is out there in a monster costume, you’re dressed in a red coat and a black suit that makes you look handsome, not hideous, and you’re only the narrator of your own story, ” Teddy points out, but his face softens when he notices that Billy is as green as the costume Teddy is wearing. “Don’t worry, Billy.”

“They’re gonna love it,” Steve assures him. Billy doesn’t look convinced.

“Alright, everybody, let’s get down to business!” Kate yells.

“To defeat the huns,” Steve murmurs and gets a confused look from Vision. He decides to show the poor guy some Disney movies at the next chance. He ushers them to the back of the stage, then he leaves them in the competent hands of Bruce and goes looking for Tony.

He finds him at the main entrance, looking like a model in the suit he is wearing. When he sees him, Tony puts down the sunglasses on his face and smiles at him.

“Hey, gorgeous,” He says.

“Hey,” Steve breathes. He takes Tony’s hand, just because he can, because Tony lets him, and grins. They find a place in the first row and sit down; Steve doesn’t let go of Tony’s hand for one second. Tony doesn’t seem to mind much because he lightly plays with Steve’s fingers while Billy gets on the stage, looking frightened for a second before he straights up and slips into his role of the narrating wizard.

“This is the story of a monster who left his home to find true love,” He begins and his voice is powerful. Steve can see Kate jump up and down in excitement at the edge of the stage, hidden behind thick curtains. “But alas, many difficulties had to be mastered first. Let me tell you the old tale of Hulkling and Princess Cassie.”

“Can we get really drunk after this?” Tony murmurs in his ear. Steve almost laughs out loud, but he manages to press a hand against his mouth and just shake his head. Tony’s smile is fond and soft. Steve thinks that he has never felt so at place than here, in this moment, his creative, lovely students in front of him, his friends sitting nearby and the, yes, perhaps the love of his life right beside him.

Tony gently presses his hand as if he knew. Together, they watch.


End file.
